Does anyone have one? (http://www.thundershirt.com/) It's supposed to keep dogs calm w/o using medication. I'm interested to know if anyone has one and whether it works. On Amazon.com, lots of the reviews are positive and the company website claims that it works on over 80% of dogs...so I'm in the process of trying to decide if it really works and whether to buy it. [I know on their site it says money back if it doesn't work, but I'd like some input from people who've used it with their dogs or heard about it.]

_________________A bunny's a delightful habit, no home's complete without a rabbit.--Clare Newberry

I have never had personal experience with them but I did follow Sarah Kramer's experience with an anxious daschund, Dexter, that she fostered and rehabilitated. She had some great things to say about thundershirts. I'll have to go find her post and link you to it.

i have one! it's for maia, our greyhound, who is terrified of thunderstorms. she developed the fear after the (stupid effing) jets from the air show started practicing over our house two years ago, and ever since then, she's been completely freaked out by things that rumble the house (i.e., thunder, other fighter jets). if we're not home when it happens, she pees and poops inside, and basically has a full-blown panic attack. if we are home when it happens, she just has the panic attack, without the accidents.

anyhow, we use a combination of the thundershirt, meds, and blasting loud music. the thundershirt definitely does help; i can tell she calms down more quickly than if we don't use it, and sometimes we can get away with skipping her meds... but she's pretty bad, so if it looks like the thunder will go on for any length of time, we use the meds regardless. so, it hasn't been a cure-all for her, but i do think it helps, enough that i always put it on her in a storm.

_________________i'm not around much, but that doesn't mean i don't love you.

We have some at the shelter. (The company is really nice and gives previously worn thundershirts free to shelters and rescues.) We've used them on 2 dogs recently (for general anxiety, not thunderstorm phobia specifically), and saw a definite difference in one of the dogs. She did a lot of yawning, stretching and sleeping while wearing it, as opposed to frantic barking/jumping in the kennel. With the other (more reactive) dog, it seemed to make a small difference. She was still anxious, but seemed not quite as bad as usual. Unfortunately when they wear it for long periods of time, it seems to make their skin underneath itchy. The dog who was really helped by the shirt was rubbing it against the fencing to scratch, and she tore a giant hole in it. The more anxious dog chewed a hole in hers. But for short, supervised periods of time I'm sure it would be fine.

Joined: Wed Oct 20, 2010 1:31 pmPosts: 1620Location: In the land of Druids and Moonrakers

raspberrycomplaint wrote:

But for short, supervised periods of time I'm sure it would be fine.

This.

When we use the human equivalent (Bear Hug Vest, for example) with kids as part of Sensory Integration Therapy, the purpose is to provide an experience of deep pressure tactile stimulation which can be calming and organising. It doesn't in itself change things, but it can help the child get themselves into the calm and centred zone where they're best able to cope with, process and respond appropriately to the sensory stimulation around them. But there is a definite habituation effect, and it works best if they don't wear the vests for extended periods of time or every day.

I'd be interested in your report about how it works out, as I too have a super-anxious doggie, and it didn't occur to me that there'd be this kind of thing out there for animals too.

So I got the thundershirt for my dog yesterday and am trying to slowly introduce it to her, like they suggest. Yesterday I just put it on her for about 10 minutes, today I put it on her twice- once for about 10-15 minutes and then again for an hour or so (I fell asleep and so did she). At first she wanted to rub against stuff and shake it off, but then it seemed to get better.

I hope it's like crate training where she will only be uncomfortable with it at first and then learn to love it? Star does the same thing as bluedawg's dog, Maia, so it would be so wonderful if this helps cut down on the anxiety because I can't always anticipate a thunderstorm and give her the meds ahead of time.

I'll stick with it and keep putting it on for varying lengths of time while we have good weather and see how it goes! Any other tips for getting her used to it other than giving her a treat like the suggest on the package?

Meggs, maia didn't have much trouble getting used to her thundershirt, but i think it's maybe because she's a greyhound so she wears 'clothes' a lot more than other dogs (heh). one thing you could try, if star gets excited about eating breakfast/dinner, is putting it on her at mealtimes (or maybe for walks?)... in other words, have her wear it during an activity she already likes and is easily distracted by. worth a shot! but yes, i think that a little bit here and there to get her used to it is probably the ticket!

i hope it helps!

_________________i'm not around much, but that doesn't mean i don't love you.

Im not sure how to feel about the Thundershirt. I know of human analogs like the pressure vests they use at the school my girlfriend works at, i think there is clinical evidence to support their use. It also seems reminiscent of Temple Grandin and the hugging machine that supposedly calms cattle down. In fact the Thundershirt website references Temple Grandin...one relevant article might behttp://www.grandin.com/inc/squeeze.html

I know a similar product called the "Anxiety Wrap" claims to use acupressure, which is bunk.

If? Haha. I have been (in the last two whole days!) doing that- treating her after or putting it on before a meal. She seems more comfortable with it already, as she's not trying to rub against things to get it off. She's not used to wearing clothing, so this is all new for her. The true test will be whenever we get a storm.

Do you put it on right when she storm comes? Or will they then associate bad things with the thundershirt? I'm so nervous about the association/conditioning! I want to make sure that there is a positive association with the thundershirt first!! I hope that this, plus melatonin, will be the ticket to Star's happiness... or at least less unhappiness during storms.

if we have a heads up that a storm is coming, we'll put the shirt on and give her a xanax ahead of time... but (as you know) it doesn't always work that way, so more often than not (especially, say, in the middle of the night when we're surprised awake by thunder), we just put it on her as soon as it thunders/she gets agitated. ahead of time is probably best (especially if you are also using melatonin) just because it gets her in a mellower frame of mind *before* she gets scared, but i still think it helps if you can't do it ahead of time.

i would try not to stress too much about the conditioning. i totally, totally get what you are saying, but if they work the way they say (as a reassuring pressure), then i try to think of it like a hug. if i get a hug when a crappy thing happens, i don't associate hugs with terrible things, i just feel comforted by the hugs. :)

i also found that at first, i wasn't wrapping snugly enough. the snugger the better. Mars, what kind of dog do you have? maia is a greyhound so she has a giant deep chest and a teeny tiny tummy, so i know what you mean about awkward shapes. :)

_________________i'm not around much, but that doesn't mean i don't love you.

i would try not to stress too much about the conditioning. i totally, totally get what you are saying, but if they work the way they say (as a reassuring pressure), then i try to think of it like a hug. if i get a hug when a crappy thing happens, i don't associate hugs with terrible things, i just feel comforted by the hugs. :)

Every time I wrap it around her, I say, reassuringly (I hope it's reassuring), "Just like a hug. See? It's just like a hug!"

I'm such a dork. Ok, snugger the better. Got it. Thanks for all the tips, bluedawg! Star is sleeping soundly near me, and I just put it on her not 15 mins ago. I'm pretty pleased thus far. Showers/thunderstorms likely this evening... Do I keep it on or take it off then put it back in later if it rains? I'm more of stress bucket right now than she is.

whenever i put maia's on, i hug her for a little while, so you're not a dork. or we're both dorks. either way.

we're having storms today too! we're going to have a few hours 'off' now before the next one, so i'm going to take her thundershirt off the next time she gets up, and then i'll put it back on again when it's stormy time again.

i'm sorry you're so stressed, i know exactly how you feel! it's hard loving them so much and not being able to explain it to them. poor babies.

_________________i'm not around much, but that doesn't mean i don't love you.

In conclusion, I find no high-quality evidence that pressure wraps, such as the Anxiety Wrap® or ThundershirtTM, help or correct behavior problems including those associated with anxiety or fearfulness. Their principle idea, that distributed pressure calms the nervous system and relieves behavior problems in dogs, remains an intriguing, yet unsupported, hypothesis. While pressure wraps are most likely safe to use, they should not be considered a replacement for more conventional treatments such as behavior modification and drug therapy.

The first place I ever groomed dogs sold these, and every single person who bought one swore that it worked miracles. They do recommend that you put it on them randomly at first, and not just before a stressful situation, because you don't want to condition them to know that something unpleasant is going to follow.

I'm thinking of trying one on Tegan to see if it will help her on trips outside the home. When she is frightened, she wants to be held tight, so hopefully she would find the pressure comforting. We got one for my dad's dog because he is terrified of storms and it has been helping him. I just need to wait a little while first, because I have spent so much money on Tegan recently that I have about 42 cents in cash!